Ok- major work got done over the weekend. Pictures don’t even do it justice, lol.
Some plant growth has been explosive- particularly the hydrocotyle Japan in the front/top and all of the swords I planted in the back/middle.
They were completely clogging the swimming lanes around the edges, and the light around the stumps.
You can see how much is shadowed here:
So, I basically went through the whole tank and started removing anything that was blocking light to something else, or was placed in the wrong spot because I made a bad decision on the original layout. At least 1/3 of the swords were essentially dead because they were being choked out by the ones around them.
Also decided to pull all the mini Christmas tree moss. It has never clung to the rocks the way I really wanted, and had begun to rot underneath, causing it to float away and cause problems.
You can see here where it has all come away from the lava rock:
I have also sprung several “leaks” of gravel from behind the rock wall, polluting the light colored sand. The cories love to spread it around, so it was time for a sand refresh, too.
So after lots and lots and lots of trimming and pulling, the whole tank is brighter, and my water flow around the tank is improved, too.
I also made the pretty bold decision to add a trio of Geophagus to the tank. I have been happy with the Bolivian Rams, but in a tank that size, they do not have the dominating presence I was hoping for. The tank needed a “top fish”. I was thinking about angels, but I have never kept Geos and the tank is set up pretty well for them (especially with the plants thinned out). I have read that they do best in groups of 5+, so I hope 3 will do ok.
Interestingly- the Bolivians colored up as soon as the Geos were added.
So, the tank now has a total of: 3 Geos, 5 Bolivian Rams, 7 orange laser corys, 20 serpae tetras, 11 green neons, 20-ish Otos, and a lot of Amanos and nerites... if I have to add 2 more Geos, I think I will still be ok.
Comments and criticism welcome as always- hope you can see it in person soon!